Hornets 127, Mavs 103 (Hornets, 2-0)
Chris Paul’s average line through two playoff games: 33.5 points, 13.5 assists, 3.5 steals, 64% from the field. He and the Hornets are on fire and right now it just looks like Dallas is in the way…After dropping two games in New Orleans, I’m sure Dallas fans are seriously second-guessing the Jason Kidd trade. He is averaging just 9.0 points and 8.5 assists, while shooting 40% from the field in the playoffs. I bet Devin Harris is looking awfully good right now and he’ll look even better if the Mavs make a first-round exit…Even though he plays the same position as Dirk, Brandon Bass keeps earning more playing time. Last night, he went for 19/8 and his strong play off the bench has earned him minutes when Nowitzki moves to center…Josh Howard has been a no-show. He is shooting just 27% from the field, which is surprising because he’s being guarded (mostly) by Peja Stojakovic, a suspect defender.
Magic 104, Raptors 103 (Magic, 2-0)
Everyone is talking about Dwight Howard, but how can you not? He had his second straight 20+ point, 20+ rebound effort to help the Magic overcome a combined 11 for 36 shooting effort from Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis…Jameer Nelson came up big with 18 points and six assists. The knock on him when he came out of college was his height, but the recent rule changes that promote more dribble penetration really helped his game flourish. His points were down for the second straight season, but he said a career high in assists (5.6) and upped his shooting percentage to 47%.
Spurs 102, Suns, 96 (Spurs, 2-0)
The Suns were doing just fine until an 11-point third quarter did them in. They have to find a way to slow down Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili’s penetration. They lost speed and athleticism when they traded away Shawn Marion for Shaq, and it’s starting to show…Doug Collins was right when he said this is a defining series for the Suns organization. If they don’t go back to Phoenix and even it up, it’ll be clear that they shot themselves in the foot with the Shaq trade.
